The USCIS temporarily suspends premium H-1B visa processing

by James Lincoln Technology Advisor

According to USCIS (the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services), the H-1B petitions will commence from April 02, 2018. However, it has temporarily suspended the premium/quick processing for all the cap-subject petitions of the fiscal year 2019, even including the ones that seek an exemption with a master’s degree in America.

During the temporary suspension, the USCIS will reject Forms I-907 and all the H-1B petitions that are intended for Premium/Fast Processing Service. Also, if a requester submits a joint check fee for Form I-129 and Form I-907 (petition for the non-immigrant worker), then both forms will be immediately rejected. Nevertheless, when the premium processing resumes, petitioners can file their Form I-907 for the fiscal year 2019.

Why Are Premium Processing Suspended Temporarily?

The USCIS has suspended the premium requests temporarily to reduce the overall processing time of H-1B visa applications. Doing this will help:

Process the pending petitions that have presently been not able to process because of high volume in the incoming petitions that were flowing in the last few years.
Prioritize the decisions for H-1B extension cases, which are approaching the 240-day spot.

Key Factors Of H-1B Premium Processing

The H-1B premium processing permits the requesters to fast-track the granting process to 15 days from the usual 3-6 months period, given that the applicant pays a fee of 1,225 USD (Rs.79,880 approximately).
The USCIS has only suspended the premium processing “temporarily.” Therefore, they will accept the requests that aren’t for the financial year 2019.
The U.S. government will notify when the premium processing will resume.
The U.S. government earlier announced its annual cap for the H1B visa at 65,000. However, understand that not all non-immigrant H1B visas qualify this cap.
While Form I-907 is utilized for premium process services, Form I-129 is for petitioners who are applying on behalf of the non-immigrant workers planning to travel to the United States temporarily for working or getting trained.
During the temporary deferment of premium processing period, an applicant should submit his/her request to the FY19 fast-track, given that he/she qualifies the expedite standards.

Requesting For Expedited Processing

Though the authority has suspended premium processing, petitioners might submit their requests to expedite their H-1B petitions for FY 2019 cap-subject, provided that they meet the eligibility criteria. The petitioners are encouraged to submit their documentary proofs to their respective support expedite requests. All the expedite requests are reviewed based on cases and granted at the preferences of office leadership.